


Shooting Star to Fall

by kumjongin



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Alternate Universe - Office, Fantasy, M/M, Magical Realism, Wishes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-29
Updated: 2017-09-29
Packaged: 2019-01-07 00:17:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12221874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kumjongin/pseuds/kumjongin
Summary: There's an old legend that the stars are old gods that have been long since forgotten. Sehun wishes on the same star every night, the most beautiful star in the night sky, and is met one night with a stranger standing on his terrace with no memory of who he is.





	Shooting Star to Fall

Every day was a version of repetition that Sehun had begun to despise. He woke up to an empty apartment, and dragged himself through the motions of showering, dressing, and going to his commute. He took the 7:25 train for thirty minutes, and then he walked into work and went straight to making his morning cup of coffee. The routine hadn’t changed in well over a year, and some people found it comforting, he supposed. He, however, was not one of those people.  
  
He knew exactly where he would have lunch that day, and that he would get off of work at 5 o’clock, only to go pick up some dinner to head home and back to the empty apartment. On Fridays, he met up with Chanyeol and they went to happy hour at a bar between their two companies. And at night, he wished upon one particular star in the night sky. It was the only thing that gave him even the smallest glimmer of hope.  
  
Sehun didn’t know when he’d started it, exactly, but there was one star he always managed to find that always looked the most beautiful to him. And in the silence of the empty apartment, standing on the terrace with a chill wind blowing around him, he wished for a love that would withstand.  
  


—

  
  
“Sehun?” Chanyeol snapped fingers in front of his face, a little too close and his voice a little too loud.  
  
Sehun blinked. “What? Sorry, I was thinking.”  
  
“Dude...you’re drowning,” Chanyeol finally let out a long sigh before taking a drink from his beer.  
  
He frowned. “What are you talking about?” Sometimes Baekhyun or Kyungsoo would join them, if they were off or didn’t mind being around Chanyeol’s raucous behavior when he’d had a few too many. But they were alone, then.  
  
“Like…” he sighed again. “When you and Yifan broke up-”  
  
“Oh come on, that was over a year ago,” Sehun butted into his sentence. He and Yifan had been together for half a year, but had ended their relationship on amicable terms the previous spring.  
  
Chanyeol held up a hand, silencing him. “That’s exactly my point. It was over a year ago, and how many dates have you been on?”  
  
It was Sehun’s turn to sigh. “A couple.”  
  
“Probably exactly two. In over a year,” Chanyeol reminded him. “But, seriously...I’m a little worried. Like you do what you have to, but that seems like a long time to be trying to get over some asshole.”  
  
“Yifan wasn’t an asshole. You and he got along great.”  
  
“Okay, yes. Fine, he was cool, but not worth pining over for a year.”  
  
It wasn’t all that often that Chanyeol actually tried to discuss something with Sehun in a serious manner. Mostly he made jokes and poked fun at him - all in good humor, but nonetheless. So being confronted with a surprisingly calm and gentle version of his friend caused him to remain silent for a long minute. “I don’t...it’s not just that. It’s not that I’m hoping we get back together, really. Last I heard he was dating some guy named Yixing anyway. I just don’t want to try. For anyone. It’s so much work for nothing but disappointment.”  
  
Chanyeol pressed his lips together in a thin line, pinning Sehun with a piercing look. “Sehun. You can’t let your fear destroy you.”  
  


—

  
  
By the middle of the following week, his friend’s words still rested heavily on his mind. He hadn’t had much to say about the conversation, because part of him knew that Chanyeol was right. His fear dominated so much of why he avoided going out with people, he’d seen too many breakups and broken hearts that he didn’t feel the need to re-inflict that pain on himself just for a brief time of happiness.  
  
But when a visiting client suddenly asked him to dinner, he agreed. Mostly as a retort to Chanyeol, but he was also good to look at. The man’s name was Luhan, who worked in the Beijing headquarters. Over a dinner of grilled seafood and vegetables, he learned about his job and his family, about his dreams for becoming the CEO of some tech company, and how he liked to bake in his free time.  
  
Everything about him seemed perfect, yet Sehun couldn’t help but feel disconnected from the other as they sat together. He told him about his job, how he’d wanted to be a photographer for a long while until he realized it wouldn’t pay the bills, and blandly admitted most of his hobbies fell by the wayside lately.  
  
When they parted ways on the subway, Sehun allowed Luhan to lean in and kiss him. And he kissed him back, but only briefly, before he stepped away and went return back to his empty apartment. It could have been something, he saw that, if he made an effort, it could probably turn into something. And maybe they’d be happy together, but he had no doubt in his mind that at some point they would simply tire of each other. Which wouldn’t be the worst thing, but Sehun wanted a love he cared about.  
  
After he’d showered and changed into the pair of sweatpants he slept in, he stepped out onto the terrace, gaze skimming over the night sky as it did every night. He sighed loudly. The whole thing seemed pointless most of the time. Why did he bother wishing on a star that wouldn’t be able to hear him?   
  
And yet when he caught sight of the star he considered the most beautiful, in all the billions of stars in the night sky, a sense of comfort and ease settled over him. “Please...let someone come to me who I can share my life with. Someone who I can love endlessly…” he mumbled quietly. It was lame, and he would never admit to any other person that he did it - much less every night - but he couldn’t find it in himself to stop wishing.  
  
Taking a deep breath of the fresh air, he turned to go back inside. He’d drawn the covers of the bed, and was getting ready to slip into the warmth when there was a flash outside. He frowned. They weren’t expecting lightning, or even rain, anytime soon. Only then he saw movement. He swallowed, and took a couple of steps closer.   
  
He peered around the blinds, a little hesitant. Logically, he wanted to think that it was just a bird or a stray cat that had wandered over, but the form seemed strangely human the more he could make out of it. Which was particularly concerning, given he lived on the fourth floor.   
  
Staying hidden against the wall, he slowly reached out to peel back one strip of the blinds, a furrow on his brow as he investigated. A gasp sharply escaped him as he took in the sight of a man. What would someone be doing on his terrace in the middle of the night?  
  
Abruptly, he slid open the door and stepped into the doorway. “Who the fuck are you and why are you on my terrace?” he demanded, sounding a little more sure and demanding than he felt. He was mostly just confused, and a little concerned. How had he gotten up there?  
  
The man paused, and slowly turned around from having been facing away from Sehun. Tan skin, full lips, and kind eyes were all in front of him, looking just as puzzled as Sehun felt. Shyly, a smile came to his lips - and Sehun had never seen anything more beautiful. “You asked me to be here,” he said, sounding strangely confident.  
  
Sehun swallowed. As handsome as he was - and god knew he was - he couldn’t help but wonder if he was drunk or on some kind of drug. Considering he’d never seen him before and he somehow seemed so sure that Sehun had invited him. “I don’t think I did...who are you?”  
  
The question left a long pause dangling between them. The man frowned a bit, looking around as if he was trying to remember something. “You know...funny thing. I have no idea who I am. I must have been forgotten…” he mused, almost mumbling the last of his words.  
  
“...You don’t know your own name?”  
  
“Afraid not. I must have lost it somewhere,” he shrugged a shoulder, seeming suspiciously nonchalant.  
  
Sehun blinked a few times, still trying to figure out how this figure had even appeared. “Okay...then can you at least tell me why you’re here? And how you got up here?” He was willing to settle for that explanation, if so anything at all could begin to make sense.  
  
But he just smiled again, even wider than before, showing his beautiful teeth and his eyes curving in amusement as though something about all of this was hilarious to him. “I already told you - you asked for me.”  
  
He licked his lips, feeling strangely and increasingly nervous about this whole interaction. For some reason, the man didn’t make him feel threatened - didn’t make him want to reach for something or call the police. But nothing made any sense. “I think you...should leave now,” Sehun finally said, standing aside to let him in. He may not have known how he’d gotten onto the terrace, but the only way he knew to leave was through the apartment.  
  
The strange man offered a brief nod, and practically glided into the room. There wasn’t another way of describing the way he moved, it was so graceful and elegant that it didn’t seem human. As he stepped past Sehun, their arms brushed together, and his skin felt like it was on fire. “I’m afraid...I don’t have anywhere to go.”  
  
“What? Don’t you have a house...or...friends?” he asked. Maybe he was homeless, he considered the possibility. He looked clean and his clothes looked well kept enough, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t a set of recent circumstances or that he’d recently cleaned up.   
  
“Neither...I guess it’s hard to explain. I don’t really know the answers myself…” he said, glancing around the room as though it would provide him answers.  
  
Sehun glanced around as well, at the plain walls and unkempt bed. It didn’t offer a lot by way of answers about him, but he didn’t know why he cared much what the other would see. “Are you...sick? I’m sorry, but none of this makes any sense. You don’t even have a name, you don’t have a place to live, you’re mysteriously on the terrace - which is impossible. I don’t...this is all too weird,” he finally said, arms folded across his chest.  
  
The man bit his lip, glancing down toward the ground. “I’m sorry.”  
  
Sehun wanted so easily to just tell him to go away, to leave the apartment and to never think of it again. But everything was so strange, and something about him was so ethereal. Sehun felt a bit out of place in just his sweatpants, even though he was in his own apartment, and this stranger was the one who was intruding on him. “It’s...late...I guess if you need somewhere to sleep...you can sleep on my couch,” he finally heard himself mumbling. It felt a little out of place, for the words to even slip out of his lips, but he couldn’t find it in himself to retract the offer.  
  
Especially not when the offer made another wide smile spread over that beautiful face. So before Sehun could really consider all the ways it was a bad idea, he went to retrieve another blanket and one of the pillows off of his bed to the couch. The stranger walked around as he did, never touching anything but observing silently as though studying it. “You aren’t a thief, are you?” Sehun asked, hands falling onto his hips as he stared at him eyeing the television.  
  
This time he laughed, a soft sound that sent shivers down Sehun’s spine. “Of course not. I just don’t see this stuff a lot...maybe I forgot…” he mumbled the last words, a frown settling onto his face.  
  
“Right...um, well if you want to watch TV, go for it. Or...are you hungry?” It had been too long since the apartment wasn’t empty, and he hardly knew how to accommodate someone. Much less someone he didn’t know at all.  
  
“I’m alright. Thank you, Sehun.”  
  
“You’re we-” he paused, a chill running down his spine. “I never told you my name.”  
  
The man flushed, a pink tinging his tan skin. “You didn’t? Oh...um, I must have seen it...somewhere...in your stuff,” he offered, a hand reaching to scratch the back of his neck.  
  
That wasn’t likely. Sehun didn’t keep many personal things around the house on display, so the chances weren’t good that he had just so happened to see something with his name. Was he a stalker? Someone he’d forgotten from high school? He didn’t think there was any possible way he could forget someone that beautiful. But how was he supposed to trust this ethereal man in his apartment who mysteriously knew his name? With a brief goodnight, he left him to his own devices and went to his own room - though he had the foresight to lock the door if something was amiss with him - or at least more than was already obvious.  
  


—

  
  
Sehun yawned as his gaze fluttered open. The alarm was sounding, and he reached to slap it off. For a minute, as he swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood up, it seemed like any other routine morning. But memory dawned on him again, of the strange, beautiful man who’d been on his terrace. Had it all been a dream?  
  
Unlocking the door, he cautiously made his way to the living room - both expecting to see him and a little apprehensive of doing so. As he stepped into the room, however, it became obvious that the apartment was empty. The blanket was bunched at the end of the couch, the pillow still at the other side.   
  
But there was no sign of the beautiful stranger. After glancing around the rest of the apartment - to see if he was in the kitchen or the bathroom in an off chance, he sighed a little. He was a stranger, he could have taken something or done anything with the way he’d stalked off in the night. But Sehun only found himself a little disappointed that he was gone.  
  


—

  
  
“You...what? You invited some guy you didn’t even know to spend the night? And this wasn’t some sexual thing?” Chanyeol demanded, staring at Sehun in absolute bewilderment. While it wasn’t Friday, the routine changed a little when Sehun asked Chanyeol to meet him for lunch.   
  
Sehun sighed a little. “I can’t explain it. He was just...suddenly there. And he didn’t know who he was or anything. He knew my name, though,” he said, twirling the pasta salad around his fork.  
  
There was a moment of silence before Chanyeol let out a bark of sharp laughter. “This sounds like some kind of fucked up dream. You sure you didn’t get drunk or high last night? Someone slip you a little something? You did say he wasn’t there this morning...you sure you didn’t just hallucinate or something?” He reached and flicked Sehun on the forehead.  
  
“I don’t think-” he started to say, but his attention was suddenly grabbed by a familiar stranger walking into the cafe. “Wait...that’s him…” he uttered, voice hardly more than a whisper.  
  
Chanyeol turned to watch. The stranger was in the same clothes as he had been last night, and just as beautiful. He walked to the counter, shyly glancing downward. “He’s...cute...doesn’t seem like your average stalker,” Chanyeol commented, a little drily - and probably too loud.  
  
“Shut up,” he groaned, but before he could register the thought, he stood from the table and crossed the cafe to approach him. “Hey…” was all he could muster.  
  
The stranger glanced up, a little surprised, but on seeing Sehun a smile settled onto his face. “Hi,” he said, voice soft and gentle.  
  
“What are...what are you doing here? You just left...sorry, I’ve just never seen you before last night and now you’re here too…” he felt a little silly saying those words, as though he couldn’t help but be a little truthful with him for some reason.   
  
“I’m sorry if I worried you. I thought you might feel better if I left early,” he shrugged a shoulder, fingers pulling on the sleeves of his sweater to pull them down more over his hands.  
  
“It’s...okay. Do you have a name today?”  
  
He flushed a little shade of pink. “I’m sorry...I don’t. I still...can’t quite remember a lot. I remember you. I always know you. But I’m a little lost otherwise,” he said, seeming a bit perplexed still.  
  
Nothing had really changed since the previous night then. He nodded a little, and ended up buying him coffee and some lunch before he had to head back with Chanyeol to work. His friend raised a brow, and asked a few questions, but Sehun didn’t have enough answers to give him.  
  


—

  
  
Sehun tried not to think it all much more than coincidence, that it was just a couple of strange occurrences with some stranger. And he could just go back to living his routine and empty life until someone came along to make it a little less empty. Of course, when he thought of it, the beautiful stranger was all that came to mind.  
  
But he kept appearing. It wasn’t just the cafe, but Sehun suddenly saw him everywhere. The laundromat on the weekends, at the grocery store, when he and Chanyeol went to happy hour. Chanyeol was convinced that it was just further proof that he was a stalker, and suggested that Sehun change up his routine. But Sehun didn’t feel a sense of fear. Instead, the more he set his sights on him, the warmer and more comforted he felt around him. They only ever said a few words to each other, but Sehun couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d known him so much longer.  
  
It wasn’t until a month later that it dawned on him what had changed. Not just that this beautiful stranger was suddenly everywhere, but that for some reason he didn’t seem to know, he hadn’t gone out to look at the night sky. The thought jolted him out of bed. It wasn’t particularly important, but it didn’t make sense why it had all suddenly changed.   
  
Going out to the terrace, he glanced around, almost expecting something - or someone - to be out there. But there was nothing, of course. And he moved to stand against the railing, gaze travelling up to the sky. Tiny points of light echoed throughout the darkness, and he scanned over them for long minutes.  
  
He couldn’t find the star.  
  
His fingers clutched onto the railing, continuing to look in hopes that he just hadn’t allocated for the changing of the sky. But he’d spent over a year wishing on the same star - the most beautiful star - and it was gone. His jaw clenched, and he closed his eyes, offering up the same wish as always, to the star that didn’t seem to be there.  
  
Suddenly, there was a sound behind him. Starting, he whirled around, only to see the beautiful stranger in the doorway. His chest tightened, and he gaped at him. “What are you...how…?” he mumbled, confusion swimming over him again.  
  
He let out a quiet laugh, a hand reaching up to scratch at the back of his neck. “Well...I’m starting to remember now. Are you okay?” he asked, seeming a little more assured than he had been in most of the other encounters.  
  
“I...don’t know. Who are you?” it felt so much like the first night he’d seen him, with him demanding answers that he didn’t have then.   
  
“Can we sit down?” he asked, fidgeting and shifting a little from foot to foot.  
  
Reluctantly, Sehun gave a little nod, and moved to go take a seat on one of the outside chairs. He didn’t know what kind of explanation would come from this, given that there wasn’t anything about this that made sense.  
  
The stranger followed after him, sitting on the other chair, his hands clasped in his lap. “I don’t know how to tell you this without maybe...confusing you. Or if you’ll even believe me. It’s just coming back to me.”  
  
“It can’t be any weirder than what’s already been happening,” he reminded him.  
  
“First of all...my name’s Jongin. I remember now, I wasn’t just holding that back from you.”  
  
“Jongin?” he uttered the name, toying it around in his mind. He didn’t know why it mattered that much, only that he was glad to have a name to apply to this man who’d been appearing throughout his entire life for the past month.  
  
“Yeah. And...well, you know that star you wish on? Every night? To find someone to spend the rest of your life with?” he said, and his voice was clear and steady.  
  
But a chill ran down his spine. First he’d know his name, knew the businesses and places he’d frequented, and now he knew about the secret wish he never told another living soul. “How do you even know about any of that?” he asked, his voice a little choked.  
  
“I’m sorry, I know this is...new. And maybe scary. But do you know a lot about gods?”  
  
He frowned. “Jongin...you’re going to need to start making some sense right now or I’m going to call the police.” His words were a bit more sure than he felt, when mostly he was just concerned with how it was possible for all of this to be happening. Something about him still caused warmth and a pleasant tingle to run through him.  
  
“Oh. I’m sorry, I really am. Okay, let me...try,” Jongin said, letting out a soft little sigh. His brow knitted together, seeming to be collecting his thoughts. “I’m just going to tell you, I guess. I’m a god.”  
  
“A god?” Sehun repeated, incredulous at best.  
  
“I know...it seems a little far-fetched, right? But...it all has to do with the stars. See, most of the stars you see in the night sky are gods. Most of us are forgotten - lost to the history books and tales. That’s why I couldn’t remember myself. I was lost...everyone had forgotten all about me...until you. You kept wishing on my star...on me...and...I don’t know, I came to you,” he explained, his hands wringing together a little.  
  
Sehun blinked a few times. “You...can’t be a god...that’s impossible...gods don’t exist…”  
  
Only as soon as the words left his lips, a strange thing happened. Jongin’s ethereal glow dimmed. Something in his eyes and shining beauty seemed to dull the faintest bit, the faint smile on his lips turning down and his gaze losing just a hint of sparkle. “You...want to forget me too?” he asked, voice quivering almost undetectably. Something Sehun wouldn’t have noticed if he wasn’t so transfixed.  
  
While it would be easy to simply dismiss the whole thing, that Jongin was just delusional or crazy or something. But he seemed so genuine, and so hurt by his statement. “No, I don’t mean that. I’m sorry...just...I didn’t think they did. I didn’t know gods came to...random people’s terraces.”  
  
The words caused a faint amount of the previous glow to emerge back onto him. And Sehun could only blink to try and reason it away. “Well...I’m part of a group of gods who...grant wishes. You wished on a star for so long...and you finally got through. So I came to grant your wish. If you want me.”  
  
Sehun swallowed. “I don’t...want to ask you to be here just because of my wish. That doesn’t seem right…”  
  
Jongin smiled. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be.”  
  
“If I kiss you...will you disappear?” he asked. The question was sudden, and probably way too forward considering they hardly knew one another. But he’d wanted to kiss him since he’d first appeared on the terrace, and everything felt like it was on fire when they’d brushed against each other.  
  
Jongin laughed quietly. “I don’t think so. There’s only one way to find out, though.”  
  
Sehun paused, seeing the clear invitation in his words. It all felt a little too surreal. He was a god. That was the result of wishing upon a star. And he was asking Sehun to kiss him. He stood up, though he felt just a bit shaky. This would take a while to process. But he took the few steps to where Jongin sat.  
  
He offered a shy sort of smile, and reached out to take Sehun’s hand. Electric jolts shot through his skin, a fire emerging over him as Jongin held on. It wasn’t unpleasant, something in it almost like he was being filled with gold. A silent moment passed over them, before Sehun leaned down.  
  
Their breath mingled with each other’s, and Sehun noted that Jongin’s breath smelled sweet. His other hand came to rest on Jongin’s beautiful cheek, more warmth and tingles shooting through him as he did so. But before he could second-guess himself, he leaned in and pressed their lips together. And suddenly he was on fire. From the tips of his toes to the edge of his scalp, he was flooded with a sense of warmth and an effervescent sort of excitement bubbling in his veins. It was unlike anything he’d ever felt before.  
  
Jongin kissed him back softly, his hand squeezing Sehun’s. They kissed for what felt like hours, but was probably only minutes. Tongues teased softly at each other’s lips, and the warm bubbling never died down as Sehun kissed him. He was overcome with the sensation that he could never tire of kissing his plush, pliant lips. And in a sort of arousal, he couldn’t help but wonder how intense fucking Jongin might be.  
  
But mostly, he didn’t feel so empty anymore.  
  
But eventually, he pulled away a bit to look at him. “Is this...okay?”  
  
Jongin bit his lip softly, glancing up at Sehun through his eyelashes. “Can I tell you a secret?”  
  
“Anything.”  
  
“I wished for you, too.”

**Author's Note:**

> written for [Fantasy Exo Fest](https://fantasyexo.livejournal.com/7573.html). I don't normally write fantasy or anything like this so this was...an attempt. I hope you don't hate it lmao.
> 
> [Twitter](http://twitter.com/kumjongin).


End file.
